Bayer Multidistrict Litigation: $15 Million Settlement in Consumer Class Action

Pharmaceutical giant Bayer Corporation has agreed to settle a consolidated class action involving its allegedly misleading marketing of particular varieties of aspirin. The litigation has been ongoing since 2008, and plaintiffs’ position received a substantial boost when the defendant’s motion to dismiss was denied in March 2010. See In re Bayer Corp. Combination Aspirin Prods. Mktg. & Sales Practices Litig., 701 F. Supp. 2d 356 (E.D.N.Y. 2010) (order denying motion to dismiss) (available here).

The plaintiffs allege that Bayer Aspirin with Heart Advantage and Bayer Women’s Low Dose Aspirin + Calcium were sold without FDA approval and without proof that the medications were safe and effective as advertised. Specifically, the plaintiffs contend that consumers were overcharged as a result of their reliance on representations on product packaging touting benefits to cardiac health that had not been properly established.

The court preliminarily approved the proposed settlement in an order dated July 23, 2012. Pending final court approval, plaintiffs will benefit from a $15 million settlement fund, out of which they will receive reimbursements of between $4 and $6 for each purchase of the at-issue products. The order granting preliminary approval is available here.